


like the sun behind the clouds

by paleromantic



Series: Damian Wayne cute stuff [1]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics)
Genre: M/M, clark and bruce are lowkey gay, damian and jason are bro bonding, damian and jon are in love, damian is a nerd, established jaytim, maybe a lil angst, pure fluff, some injuries but this is batman you know that
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-24
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2018-09-19 18:11:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9453695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paleromantic/pseuds/paleromantic
Summary: Damian Wayne falls in love, and Jason Todd gets to witness it. (UNFINISHED, ABANDONED)(Title lyric from "To see you alive" by Flatsound)





	1. Chapter 1.

When Jason Todd got up in the middle of the night to answer the door, he definitely had not been expecting this.

 

His back was  _killing_ him. Patrol had really been kicking his ass recently, he must have been really letting himself go. He guessed that living with Tim would do that to anyone, though. Tim, the control freak that he was, insisted on doing everything in the cramped apartment, so Jason had really been living a life of leisure, apart from his job. He supposed he had gained a few pounds here and there, but it was just some... extra padding. Tim seemed to like it, anyway. 

This had been his first day off patrol in a week, and Tim was out of town on business, so Jason had taken the opportunity to completely relax and spend the day doing absolutely nothing, only leaving the bed to retrieve some choice drinks from the party time cupboard, and to make a nest on the couch so that he could binge some movies.

At around midnight or so, he had switched back to coffee, which led him to where he had been, at 2 am, dosing off with a half-full cup of coffee on the table beside him. Until, of course, the knock interrupted him. 

 

 

"Guys, you know this is my day o-"

 

Damian Wayne was a boy of short stature, even for his age. However, the late hour, the darkness and the bad weather just made him seem even smaller. He had his dad's jaw, that was for sure, and he looked very like his mother, but there was something there that made Jason think of Martha. He was sure Bruce had noticed that too, even if it had taken him a while. It was an overall nice combination, Jason noted. He took a lot of the best physical features of his family, that would work well for him in the future.

Still, none of that explained why he was standing on Jason's doorstep in the middle of the night. The Demon Brat was wearing his signature scowl, but it seemed to be faltering. Clearly, something was wrong, even Jason could see that. He couldn't remember doing anything wrong lately, he hadn't killed anyone, so he couldn't really imagine why the littlest Robin was paying him a visit so late.

 

And then he saw the blood. The kid was swaying on his feet, clutching his side.

 

_Oh._

 

Apparently, Patrol hadn't been going easy on the kid either. 

 

"Hurts." The kid's voice was strained, and any other emotion Jason might have been feeling was immediately replaced with worry and protectiveness. 

Carrying him inside was the easy part, laying him out on the bed so that he could help him easier. The kid was freezing, like a cold rag doll, and it was starting to scare Jason. Getting the suit off was a nightmare since it was wet, so Jason, praying that he wouldn't be murdered by Bruce, got a knife and cut it off. The kid shivered and started to curl up, so Jason had to stop him from worsening the injury. He quickly grabbed one of the many first aid kits Tim had stowed all over the apartment, opening it and sorting out the things he would need.

The kid cried out as he disinfected, but Jason was able to sooth him before finishing cleaning it up. Shit, the kid needed stitches. Grimacing, Jason took out a needle and some thread, giving him a belt to bite down on. Damian seemed to realise what was happening just before it happened because he held himself as still as possible. Jason steeled himself before neatly stitching the skin back together, closing the wound. To his credit, Damian was a very good patient.

After cleaning up the blood again, Jason put a bandage over the freshly stitched wound and secured it firmly. He then dressed Damian in clean and try boxers and a baggy t-shirt so that he'd be comfortable. Abandoning his plans for falling asleep on the couch for the night, he helped Damian to get under the duvet so that he'd be warm. The kid murmured a soft thank you, which made Jason a lot happier than he would ever admit to anyone.

A while after Damian's breathing had evened out and he had started to snore against the older man's chest, Jason could feel his own eyes starting to close. Quickly, before he could forget, he took out his phone and opened up his messaging app.

 

_Bruce, you dick. No more solo Patrol for Damian._

 

He looked down at the sleeping kid. He seemed a lot less... demonic like this. But Jason reminded himself that this was really just a one-time thing, that the kid must have been really desperate if he didn't go to the Manor. 

After that, he couldn't really stop himself from falling asleep.  


	2. Chapter 2.

It was not a one-time thing.

 

When Jason had woken up the next morning, Damian was gone. But the bed was warm, meaning that the kid had only gotten up just before him. Jason groaned and buried his face in the pillow again, almost falling asleep again before remembering the state the kid was in when he arrived there the night before. Quickly, he pulled on clean pants and padded out to the other room.

 

"Need some help with that, boy wonder?"

 

Damian froze, kneeling on a stool with his arm outstretched towards Jason's stash of cereal. He was still wearing Jason's shirt, and Jason could see where the blood had leaked out when he was asleep. He made his way over, easily taking down the box Damian had been reaching for. Before the boy could exert himself again, Jason got the milk, a spoon, and a bowl, letting him make his own cereal before carrying both the bowl and the kid to the couch.

 

"Thank you," Damian said through a mouthful of Cheerios. " Could've gotten it myself, though."

 

Jason rolled his eyes. "Try and lie down a little more kid, you just got stitches last night. After you eat, I've gotta wash 'em and re-bandage them."

Damian grumbled and turned so that his feet were on the side of the couch, with his back pressed into Jason's side. He munched happily at his cereal, quickly finishing the bowl and stretching to put the bowl on the table before Jason did it for him. He then huddled into Jason's shirt and pushed back against him, until Jason wrapped his arm around the kid gently. He had expected Damian to immediately tell him to go fuck himself, but instead the kid just cuddled into his arm happily. It was quiet for a while.

"Hey, Kid."

Damian tilted his head back to look at Jason. "Yes?"

Jason fiddled with the kid's sleeve. "Thanks for letting me help you."

Damian didn't say anything after that, but he stayed curled up with Jason like for the rest of the day (with snack breaks..... and a disinfectant fiasco).

***********************  
 _three months later_

  
"UGH."

Jason heard Damian before he saw him, and he scooted over on the couch to make space for the no doubt borderline homicidal kid. The boy threw his bag down and flopped onto the couch, making nondescript angry noises into the fabric.

"What's wrong, baby bat? Muggles got you down?"

Damian's silence was unamused, to say the least.

"Well, if you're not gonna tell me then I'll just have to watch Say Yes to the Dress on my own, kid."

It took almost ten whole seconds for the kid to break.

"Those children are so _stupid_ , I don't want to go back there." He grumbled, huffing into the pillow. "And now Superman's little country bumpkin is in my year and I want to _die_."

Jason snorted and leaned back into the couch again. "Country bumpkin?"

"I can practically hear the damn banjo plucking whenever he walks into a room."

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Better get used to it kiddo, since Supes is holing up in the Manor for the foreseeable future. Maybe an arranged marriage is on the cards?"

Damian looked horrified. "Arranged marriage?"

"I now pronounce you Mr. Bumpkin-Wayne." Jason smirked and started to hum that stupid bridal song.

Damian groaned and slammed his face against the pillow again. "Tell father I died angry."

"Tell him yourself, brat." Jason ruffled his hair and went back to channel surfing. "C'mon kid, it's not like you have to talk to him. You ignored Timmy for an entire year."

"I would have gone longer if he didn't live here most of the time too."

Jason grinned to himself. "I guess he does live here, doesn't he."

"Ugh, sap."

Jason rolled his eyes. "You have the romantic experience of a teaspoon, kid. Come back to me in a couple of years. Now, are we watching shitty shows or not?"

Damian sighed and trudged to the bedroom to get changed. 


	3. Chapter 3.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have literally no idea how often I'll be updating, so I'm sorry!

Damian Wayne hated school.

 

Well, not so much hated it, but hated the fact that he had to go there. He had argued with his father for weeks when he had found out that he had to start in Gotham Academy that coming August. He had even threatened to kill Drake (That was not an option anymore given the fondness that Jason had developed for him, and Damian was absolutely NOT warming up to him as well.) He had starved himself for days in protest, and that had been working until he had found out that Jason was worried about him. An upset Jason Todd was not something that anyone wanted, least of all Damian.

 

So, towards the end of August, Damian found himself to be Gotham Academy's newest VIP. Nevertheless, every day there was a bore for him. 

 

His father, Alfred, Drake, and even Todd, the traitor, had insisted that it was essential that Damian spends time around people of the same age group, but having spent almost half a year among them, Damian was almost at his breaking point. The only person he could stand there was a boy named Colin Wilkes. They often worked together on projects and presentation, as Damian did not trust himself to not resort to torture when he worked with others, and the boy had even visited the Manor a few times. His father had almost ruined the sofa with coffee the first time that Alfred had announced that Damian had brought a friend home to do homework and 'play'. 

 

Jason, however, just grinned and told him that he was proud and that he knew he had it in him. 

 

After acquiring a friend, the school became a little more bearable for the youngest Wayne. Enjoyable at times, even.

 

And then that  _imbecile_ arrived. 

 

Jonathan Samuel Kent stood a fair three inches taller than Damian, which irked him to no end. The boy had inherited his father's blue eyes and his parents' dark hair, but his face was still padded with boyish puppy fat. Damian didn't doubt that he would eventually look very similar to his father. However, he had an accent that was purely his own, and Damian  _hated_ it. But the worst thing by far was that the boy seemed intent on being Damian;s friend. Their fathers, Bruce in particular, had been overjoyed at the thought of that. Damian was livid. 

 

*********************************

 

After Jason dropped him home, Damian quickly changed into his pyjamas and then flopped onto the bed. Stupid Jon. Stupid Superman, Stupid EVERYTHING. Todd had said that he was overreacting, and he probably was, but that didn't change the fact that Damian was pissed off as hell. 

 

Maybe they sold Kryptonite on eBay.

 

_Idiot, that would only half kill him._

 

Damian sighed and climbed into the bed. These were matters for the morning, not the night time. He settled himself down and attempted to fall asleep.

 

***********************************

 

Dick Grayson woke, not for the first time, to the sound of screaming. 

 

Groaning, he pushed himself up and looked down at his sleeping girlfriend.  _I should go help whoever that is._

 

Barbara's hair fanned out on the pillow, and she made a small noise and curled up as Dick kissed her cheek. She had been way too tired to properly remove all of her makeup, so she was rocking the raccoon look, but Dick still felt his heart skip when he looked at her. 

 

"Back soon, Babs." He got out of the bed, shivering slightly and pulling on his ratty old robe. He'd had that thing since he was a teenager, it barely fit anymore, but it was warm as fuck and the Manor was freezing at night. Carefully, he padded down the hallway, stopping outside of Damian's door. The poor kid was still whimpering.

 

Dick gently pushed open the door and made his way over to the bed, gently shaking the boy. Damian curled up and shook, shaking his head and mumbling, so Dick kept trying. When he did wake up, he looked pale and tiny, and Dick couldn't help but hug him. Damian clung to him, shaking still, and Dick decided to pick him up, carrying him back to his own room. Barbara was still asleep, but she started to stir when she felt the weight change on the bed. Dick held Damian on his lap as she sat up, pushing her hair back and looking at him. She didn't really need to ask, she just helped Damian to lie down between them, kissing his cheek and cuddling into him, Dick on the other side. Damian blushed sleepily and mumbled a few thank yous, and Barbara gently kissed his cheek. It took almost half an hour for the kid to settle down enough to sleep again, with Barbara falling asleep again not long after, so Dick closed his eyes and held his brother, relaxing until he could feel himself drift off. 

 

************************************

Jon was sitting beside him when he arrived the next morning.

 

Damian was seeing red, he simply could not sit next to this idiot for the rest of the year. He had to get his hands on his father's Kryptonite, and soon. There was no way he could allow this to continue. 

Jon Kent had to go.

 


	4. Chapter 4.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the long gap, I can't promise that there won't be more of them.

Despite being in Wayne Manor for almost two weeks now, Jon hadn’t met everyone properly yet. He’d met Bruce, of course. Damian too, since they went to school together, and Alfred. Dick Grayson had made a point of greeting him warmly, but the rest, he had only gotten glimpses of. It was weird, although Jon supposed that because of the sheer number of them, it was hard to get them all in the same place. Bruce Wayne collected children like most people collected stamps, or wages.

 

Still, the Manor was mostly empty since people rarely gathered together. During the night it was terrifying, given Jon’s fear of the dark. Gotham frequently had bad weather, so at night, Jon could hear the wind howling, making the branches rattle against the window. He couldn’t sleep very well there. 

 

As a result, he had taken to wandering, exploring the maze that was Wayne Manor. He never went into anyone’s bedrooms, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t look at them from the door. Each one of Bruce’s kids’ bedrooms gave away a lot about their personalities, Jon thought. 

 

Damian’s bedroom was spotless, the bed looked hardly slept in. In fact, the only indications that the room was Damian’s at all were the drawings on the wall and the sword leaning against the bed. Jon smiled but, fearing for his life, moved on quite quickly. Dick Grayson’s room was slightly messier, and was usually littered with toiletries, presumably belonging to him and his long-time girlfriend Barbara Gordon, or so he had been told by his father. The room suited Dick, it was always warmer than the others and smelled very clean and pleasant. It was especially comforting when Jon was scared.

 

Tim Drake was rarely in his room, Jon had been told that he was living outside of the Manor. He didn’t really know any more than that. The room was cleaned quite regularly by Alfred in his absence, but some of Tim’s clothes still hung in the open closet and there were some books of his on the nightstand. One day, overcome by curiosity, Jon carefully made his way over to leaf through the books. After flicking through a couple, he finally spotted the inscription that was on the inside cover of each.

 

_ Property of Jason Peter Todd. _

 

Jon had heard of Jason Todd, of  _ course _ he had, but this was actual proof that the boy really existed. He had nice handwriting, a looping cursive that seemed a contrast to the stories he had heard.

 

Jason Todd’s bedroom made Jon’s heart hurt. The minute he opened the door, he knew that he had stumbled upon something very important, an almost hallowed ground.

 

The room was as in Jason had just left it, despite the fact that Jon knew that the man hadn’t been there in some years. The duvet on the bed was still messy as if someone had recently woken up there, and open, dog-eared books lay around the room, in various states of completion. A hoodie was draped over the chair by the desk, and homework lay open on it. The windows looked out over the pond in the garden and you could see over to Gotham City. Jon could see why the second robin had chosen it. It was almost as if, Jon noted, Jason had simply walked out and not come back. Although he supposed, that was exactly what had happened. Everything was clean though, so Jon assumed that Alfred cleaned the room quite regularly. He didn’t know why, but that made him sad. There were lots of other rooms too, but Jon liked to spend his time trying to decipher as much as he could from the bedroom’s of the robins, or in the library. He liked it there, during the day at least.

  
  


********************************************************

 

Sometimes, Jason wished he was still dead. He had lost so much, sometimes he thought that being alive wasn’t really worth it. He had sisters he hadn’t even met, Damian had told him about them. He hadn’t seen Dick properly in forever. Bruce was… practically non-existent to him and dammit, he missed Alfred’s cooking. Tim had told him that he was always welcome in the Manor, but Jason wasn’t sure. There was no point stirring up trouble for them, and he was sure Bruce hated him enough for taking Tim away. And now that Damian was spending more and more time here…. Jason wasn’t sure how much longer his luck would last.

 

It hurt, though. He had given a lot in his Robin suit, and even now he helped them as much as he could as the Red Hood, but still, there was a whole new part of the family that was off limits to him. They probably didn’t want to meet him anyway. 

 

Drowning his sorrows in Ben and Jerry’s was the best course of action, he decided. 

 

********************************************************

 

“What do you know about Jason Todd?”

 

Barbara flinched as soon as the question left Stephanie’s mouth and she started to feel guilty.

 

“J-Jason? Why do you want to know about Jason?” Barbara averted her eyes, typing. Steph shrugged and sat down, pulling her jacket around her.

 

“I just.. it’s weird that I have a kind of brother I don’t know about.” 

 

Stephanie frowned. Surely Jason Todd couldn’t be that bad. He was Robin… well, he was also Red Hood, she supposed it was possible, but. She at least wanted to meet him. 

 

Barbara seemed to be stalling, as she clicked out of what she was doing, but then she had nothing left to distract herself, and she turned to Stephanie, her wheelchair clicking against the metal computer desk frame. 

“Jason was.. After Dick became Nightwing, Bruce was alone. And you know, Bruce shouldn’t be alone. But one day, this kid- Jason- was trying to steal the wheels off the Batmobile, when Bruce caught him. Before long, Jason became robin, but he was a lot more willing to kill than Bruce would have liked.”

 

Stephanie frowned, and Barbara continued.

 

“Jason wanted to.. find out who his real mother was, so he went out to look for her after Bruce benched him. Unfortunately, his search ended up in the same place as the Joker, and.. Jason got caught in the crossfire.”

 

Barbara sounded like she was going to cry, and the realisation of that alone was enough to make Stephanie’s heart squeeze.

 

“The Joker beat him to death. Bruce didn’t get there in time. He died and the first thing I ever said to him was that he wasn’t Dick Grayson, how fucking shitty was I?” She sniffed and wiped her face. “Bruce was really torn up, for a long time. It took forever for him to take on another Robin… But then Jason came back.” 

 

Stephanie nodded. This part, she knew. Lazarus pit, Red Hood… They all knew that. 

 

“But then… why isn’t he here?”

 

Barbara sighed. “He was… understandably…. angry with us. He wanted nothing to do with us, and I think Bruce pretended that he didn’t want anything to do with Jason either. Sometimes, I think he’s still pretending.”

 

“Where is he?” 

 

“He lives in an apartment on the south side of Gotham, I don’t know exactly where. It’s where Damian goes when he’s not here. It’s where… It’s where Tim is living.”

 

Well. Stephanie wasn’t expecting that. She knew that Tim had all but moved out of the Manor, but she had no idea that he was holing up with the Jason Todd. Damn, Timmy must’ve had some game. 

 

Barbara was watching her. “You want to meet him.” 

 

Stephanie nodded awkwardly.

 

“Bruce won’t like it.”

 

“Do I care?”

“Good point. Tell him I said hey?”

 

Stephanie nodded and got up, hugging her quickly before going back to her room. She needed to do this right, you can only meet your brother for the first time once. 

 

***************************************************

 

“Jonathan, what are you doing.”

 

Jon, who had been falling asleep on the kitchen table, groaned and made some non-committal noises. Damian gritted his teeth. It was 3 am, hardly a good time for a table nap.

 

“You have a bedroom, you know.” 

 

Jon shrugged, snuggling into his arms and Damian sighed, walking over and picking up the boy.

 

Jon opened his eyes and looked panicked, almost falling. “What’s happening???”

 

Damian shushed him, walking while carrying him. “You were falling asleep. I’m taking you to bed, what are you, stupid?”

 

Jon pouted, but his eyes were closing and that took away from the severity of it. 

 

Damian had him in his room in no time, and he carefully put the boy down on the bed, covering him with the duvet. Jon yawned and clung to his pillow, his hair fluffing up and his hoodie making him look small. The soft lighting cast shadows on his face, and despite himself, Damian supposed that he looked rather cute. 

 

He shook his head quickly, fleeing before he could think any more silly thoughts. Jonathan Kent was not cute, he was stupid and annoying and Damian hated his guts. 

 

***************************************************

 

Tim yawned and rolled over, kissing Jason’s shoulder. Jason looked so much younger when he was asleep, all the anger and worries that plagued him during his waking hours slipped away, and Tim could lie there and watch him for hours. Unfortunately, there was someone at the door.

 

“Jay, wake up.”

 

Jason groaned and curled up more, and Tim laughed before shaking him. “Jason.”

 

“S’too early, Timmy.”

 

“There’s someone at the door.” That got his attention, and Jason pushed himself up, pulling on underwear and a pair of old ratty sweatpants. Tim curled up in the warm duvet and made a happy noise. “Love you!”

 

Jason chuckled. “Love you too babe.” 

 

He yawned as he made his way to the door, picking up his trusty old PM9, loading it. Never be caught off guard, that was his motto. He rolled his shoulders before opening the door.

 

It was a girl. She was a good half a foot shorter than Jason, and her blond hair hung down past her shoulders. She was wearing a leather jacket and a cut-off wonder woman shirt, with ripped jeans, and she was smiling so wide Jason was afraid her face would tear. However, her smile faded under Jason’s suspicious gaze.

 

“Who the fuck are you.” 

 

She looked awkward, glancing at the gun in his hand.

 

“I’m uh, Stephanie. Stephanie Brown. You’re…. Jason Todd, right?” 

 

Jason squinted, lifting the gun. “How the fuck do you know my name.”

 

She quickly put up her hands, going pale. “Wait, don’t shoot me, I’m your sister!”

 

Jason seemed to freeze, and he lowered the gun. “Prove it.” 

 

Stephanie looked around, before pushing Jason back into the apartment, lowering her voice. “I was Robin. You were Robin. You’re the Red Hood. Damian Wayne is my little brother, Bruce Wayne is Batman, Dick Grayson is-”

 

“Okay, okay I get it, you’re my sister. What the hell are you doing here? Did… Did Bruce send you here?”

 

Jason’s voice was tinged with panic, and edged with sadness that hurt Steph’s heart. Did he really think that Bruce would… well, she guessed it was reasonable.

 

“No one sent me, I promise. Well, I got the address from Dami, and Babs helped me to find out more about you, but otherwise I’m here on my own.”

 

Jason stared at her, deadpan. 

 

Stephanie sighed. “Look, you don’t have to talk to me if you don’t want, I just wanted to maybe get to know you a little, I didn’t like not knowing my own brother and-”

 

Jason stepped forward and pulled her into a hug, and Steph let out a little squeak, whether because of surprise or panic, she wasn’t sure. Probably both. But damn, Jason was a good hugger.

 

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Stephanie.” Was that.. was Jason choking up?

  
Stephanie grinned against him. “Nice to meet you too, Jason, I’ve been waiting a long time for this.”


	5. Chapter 5.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not really happy with this chapter, but I'm between exams and had to post something so here you go!

Jason Todd had never been one for miracles. He believed that if you wanted something, really wanted something, you worked your ass off for it. 

But, he had to admit, meeting his sister for the first time felt a little like a miracle. 

She was sweet and smart, everything Jason could have asked for in a sister, and the look on Tim’s face when he saw her honestly added a decade to Jason’s life. Tim practically jumped the couch to hug her, and they stayed in the hug for a long time. After that, Jason offered to make coffee (Tim would have but he was too busy being interrogated by a very angry Stephanie).

“Why didn’t you tELL ANY OF US YOU WERE LIVING WITH JASON TODD.”

Tim rolled his eyes and shrugged, hugging a pillow. “Didn’t think Bruce would take it well.”

“Okay, point, but still. I’m your friend, why didn’t you tell me!? I think I would have been interested that you were in love with the guy who has half the damn Manor dedicated to him!”

Jason paused, spoon in hand. “Wait, what?”

Stephanie turned to him, blushing slightly. “Well… since you… The entire library is dedicated to you…. You have your own section of the garden, Bruce goes there sometimes….”

Jason frowned. That couldn’t be right. Bruce wouldn’t have… No way.

He brought the drinks over. “Stephanie Brown, I think we have a lot to talk about.”

******************************************************

Damian was practically being blackmailed into spending time with Jonathan, and it was killing him. Although he supposed it was a good method of research, figuring out how best to get rid of the other boy. The boy was just so nice, it was very irritating. No one else seemed to get it, though. Damian absolutely was not going to fall under that boy’s charms. 

“Damian, wait!”

Jon’s boots splashed in the puddles that littered the school grounds as he made his way over, slinging his arms around the other boys shoulders. Damian gritted his teeth, but allowed it to happen. The other boy was always so warm, and despite himself, Damian appreciated the extra heat. Along with that, he always brought a particular smell with him, which Damian wasn’t opposed to. He could feel the boy’s body heat seeping through his jacket, and against his better judgement, he leaned into it.

Jon didn’t seem to notice. “Hey! You look lonely.”  
Damian rolled his eyes. “Maybe because I’m alone?”

Jon grinned and shrugged, walking with him. His smile was infectious, Damian hated it so much. In fact, every time he heard it he felt his face heat up. In anger, of course. No other reason. 

However, eventually they reached the door and Jon withdrew his arm. They made their way to class, settling in their respective seats and paying attention to the teacher. In Jon’s case, anyway. Damian rarely listened, unless something managed to grab his attention for longer than a few seconds. It was something about American Presidents, Damian vaguely caught a couple of words. He didn’t really care, they were all basically the same anyway. Jon seemed pretty interested, though, scribbling contently, his tongue sticking out a little. He looked absolutely ridiculous, and Damian groaned, laying his head on his hands. Stupid Kent. 

***********************************************

Damian stormed off to his room after school, not stopping to talk to anyone. Dick pouted and looked upset, but his immediate grin proved otherwise. Jon threw his bag down and went to find his dad, who was typing on a laptop, probably Bruce’s. He launched right into a play-by-play of his school day, including an account of his interactions with Damian.

“He’s so cool dad! I don’t think he likes me much though….”

Clark chuckled and ruffled his sons hair. “He’s a bat, Jon, he’s just.... grumpy. Give him time, I’m sure you two will get on fine.”

Jon nodded and looked happy, hugging his dad before going to retrieve his bag.


	6. Chapter 6.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Sorry for the... long delay, but I hope this chapter is okay? Hopefully I'll be churning out updates semi-regularly from now on!   
> \- Rory.

“Father, I want you to get rid of them.”

Bruce sighed and turned a little in his chair, looking across the room to where his son stood. Damian said this every day, and he was getting exhausted. “Damian, this is getting excessive. They’re not causing any trouble, and I’m enjoying having them here. They’re staying, and that’s final.”

Damian crossed his arms. “Father, it’s not _fair_ -“

Bruce shushed him, and then turned fully, facing the boy.

“No, Damian. You’re making it unfair. Clark is here as my guest and he will remain here for as long as I allow it, and I allow it for as much time as he needs. Jon has been nothing but courteous to you and you’re being childish by insisting that them being here is unfair to you.”

Damian frowned but didn’t speak, so Bruce continued.

“Jon needs friends, Damian. He’s enjoying school here, and he even told me that he was looking forward to helping you train. I refuse to stand by while you torment him like that. Dammit, he misses his mother, and you of all people show know what that feels like.”

Damian opened his mouth. Closed it again. “I… suppose.”

“You suppose?”

Damian bit his lip and looked down at his hand, picking at his nails. “I’ve been… harsh. I’ll try to be more tolerant of them, while they stay here.”

Bruce nodded slowly. “That’s all I can ask. Thank you, Damian.”

***********************************

“You know, you could come see for yourself.” Stephanie sipped her tea, burning her lip a little and putting it down gently on the coffee table. “You’re welcome at the Manor, you know that.”

Jason raised an eyebrow at her and snorted. “Welcome to the Manor? If I was so welcome, why hasn’t Bruce tried to contact me inviting me there?” He shook his head and drank from the cup in his hands, glancing at the television, which was showing old Say Yes to the Dress reruns. “He doesn’t want me there, Steph, and I don’t want to be there.”

“Dude, you and I both know that he’s not good at… anything even vaguely emotional. And this is super fucking emotional, so someone is going to have to drag him into a confrontation if we want anything to happen. Besides, like, _all your shit_ is in the Manor, and I made Tim promise not to get it for you. You’ve gotta get it yourself.”

Stephanie looked smug. Jason kind of hated (loved) it.

“I’ll get Damian to.”

Stephanie shook her head. “Not if he wants to keep his patrol nights, he won’t.”

“Fuck, you’re the worst.” Jason huffed and crossed his arms. “Maybe, in the… distant future.”

Stephanie beamed at him. “That’s what I like to hear, Jay.”

“I changed my mind, I don’t want any sisters. They fucking suck.”

“Too late to go back now, Todd. Now go shower, we’re going out tonight.”

Jason watched her as she got up and went to the kitchen. Her ponytail swung behind her, and he had honestly never met someone who had been able to tell him what to do so damn fast. He shook his head, finishing his tea in one go and getting up to put it in the sink. On his way, he flipped on the heater and grinned.

Everything wasn’t fine, but fuck if this wasn’t a good start.

******************************

“Master Damian has requested your company, Jonathan.”

Jon glanced up from where he was laying on the bed, struggling through his homework, and looked over at the old man at the door. Alfred Pennyworth was a distinguished man, and he dressed sharply for work, but Jon could see how tired the man was. He could see why. There were so many of them, he didn’t know how the man even kept their names straight.

Still, it was obvious that he cared for them deeply.

“Damian asked for me?” Jon dragged his lower body over, sitting up and closing the book.

“Yes, sir, something about homework? Perhaps he wants your help reviewing a problem?”

Jon knew that was unlikely. Damian was smart. Not that Jon was stupid, the other boy was just… above average. Way above.

“Uh, sure, okay!”

He grabbed his books, and his pens and made his way down to the huge, extravagant library. The last time Jon had seen anything like it was in Beauty and the Beast. He loved that room.

When he got there, Damian was already doing homework, the room lit by multiple lamps. The soft light from them cast harsh shadows on the boy, and Jon was hesitant as he approached him.

Damian looked up at him. “Well, we don’t have all day, Jonathan.”

Jon winced and smiled. “Sorry, sorry! Alfred told me you wanted to see me.”

“I do. Sit down.”

Jon sat down quietly, and Damian seemed to regret his choice of words. “I apologise. Thank you for coming, I was wondering if we could do our homework together from now on. It would be… more efficient.”

Jon grinned. “Really? You wanna be study buddies?”

Damian gritted his teeth slightly. “Yes. Study Buddies.”

Jon laughed and then put his books on the desk beside Damian’s. “What are you doing right now?”

“Algebra. I enjoy it.”

“You do? I don’t really get it.” Jon took out his algebra homework. It was an exercise sheet that the teacher had printed off for them. Jon really wasn’t looking forward to doing it.

“I could… help you. If you wanted.”

Jon shrugged. “I don’t know, I don’t want to be a bother, Damian.”

“Jonathan… Jon. It’s not a bother. We can work through them together, and I can help you to understand it better. If you’d like.”

Jon didn’t know why Damian was being so nice to him. It was probably part of some trick, but… it was nice. And he did need help with his algebra homework.

“Okay, then let’s start with Algebra?”

Damian nodded and grabbed his pen, and a fresh sheet, before pulling his chair closer to Jon’s.

*********************************

Jason had really needed a night out, and a night out with Tim and Stephanie was a kind of fun he had never encountered before. Usually, he and Tim were too tired from their respective patrols to go out properly, so they just passed a bottle or two of red wine back and forth until they were both satisfied, and sleepy-drunk. Jason wasn’t complaining, he loved the nights that they did that, but there was something satisfying about getting dressed, going out and getting real drinks for once.

“Come on, there’s a nightclub I’ve got to take you guys to, it’s my favourite!” Stephanie grinned and grabbed their arms. With high heels, she was just up to Jason’s shoulder and she looked amazing in the clothes she had grabbed from the manor on the way. Tim looked fantastic too, surprisingly casual for a night out, but Jason definitely had no problems with that. Jason had opted for a slightly nicer version of what he usually wore, but he didn’t really mind what he looked like. He just wanted to let loose for a while, and have a good night. There was a lot to celebrate, after all.

Stephanie brought them downtown, down a flight of steps to what was probably the least grimy looking nightclub Jason had ever seen. The bouncers outside the door looked her up and down, in a way that made Jason’s stomach turn a little, but he let it slide. Stephanie hadn’t seemed to notice, and if anything happened, Jason could just kill them. Simple.

The nightclub had a purple interior, sleek black pillars, and a countertop, behind which stood a couple of bartenders. The place was packed, and Stephanie grinned, pulling them to the bar and letting them order. Jason ordered a jack and coke for himself before letting her scoot in front of him. He chuckled as she ordered a huge, pink cocktail, and they made their way out onto the floor, enjoying the music and letting Stephanie dance around them, even dancing together a little when songs that Jason actually knew came on.

They stayed there until late, Jason helping them upstairs as they hit the cold air of the street. Jason had always been proud of the fact that he could hold his liquor, but it did come in handy sometimes.

Stephanie slipped her heels off and passed them to Jason as she ran to Tim, asking him for a piggyback ride. He obliged and crouched a little as she clambered onto his back, pulling her skirt down and then screaming, patting his side like a horse. “Onward, noble steed!”

Jason snorted and watched them, running to catch up. Stephanie’s wild giggles were caught up in the night air, and Tim laughed along with her, having to stop eventually when his back got tired. They walked together back to Jason’s apartment, Jason giving her his sneakers eventually, to save her feet. After letting them in, Stephanie crashed on their couch, not bothering to take her makeup off. Tim passed out on the bed not long after.

Taking his time to lock the door, checking it, Jason rolled his eyes and got a blanket, grabbing his own wipes (Sue a guy for wanting an efficient way to clean himself after patrol), and dropping them beside her on the table, pulling the blanket over her. Tim, on the other hand, he stripped to his t-shirt and boxers, pulling the duvet over him before pulling his own jacket and jeans off, climbing in beside him.

Fuck, life from now on was going to be fun, if Stephanie was involved. Jason definitely wasn’t complaining.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian's a cutie I love him so much? And Stephanie and Jason would totally be bros don't @ me. Thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!!! Enjoy

Ice was beginning to dust the footpaths, and it nipped at Stephanie’s toes as she walked. She could have put on her heels to walk easier, but her feet ached from dancing all night, so frostbite it was.

The sun was starting to rise, the glare hitting her eyes and making her squint as she followed the past that led to the coast. Gotham was beautiful, at least that’s what Stephanie thought, especially when there weren’t as many people around. Sure, it was dirty, and sure the crime level was high, but when there was no one around, and you had a clear shot of both the crashing ocean against the rocks at the coast, and the skyline of the city that wasn’t even awake yet, it was hard to think of it as anything but beautiful, anything but home.

She smiled a little, and shivered, but didn’t speed up her walk. The journey didn’t take long anyway.

Getting inside Wayne Manor was easy when you knew how to do it. Bruce was surprisingly lenient when it came to stopping his family from getting in or out. Getting a firm foothold, she slowly and quietly made her way up the wall to where she had left her window ajar, pulling it up and hauling herself inside.

Her room was cold and dark, the bed still unmade from last time she had stayed there, and Stephanie huffed as she walked through the room, shedding her clothes from the previous night in favour of warmer, fluffy pyjamas she had stolen from Tim, accompanied with fuzzy socks, to keep her feet warm, and stop them from hurting so bad.

She sat on her bed, and stretched, feeling her back pop all the way along her spine, and sighed. She wasn’t even tired; the walk had woken her up more than anything. Dammit, what a waste. Groaning, she got up, and made her way silently through the halls, down to the kitchen. If she wasn’t sleeping, she was gonna make herself some killer hot chocolate. Humming, she set out everything she would need on the counter, and got out the milk, pouring it in a saucepan and waiting for it to heat up. In her mug- it was a huge Batman one she had gotten Bruce for Father’s Day- she put the hot chocolate mixture and a dash of cinnamon, and a ridiculous amount of sugar.

After putting her drink together and stirring it, she put some whipped cream on top and grinned, climbing onto the counter to get some of the cookies Dick had put there last time he was home.

She loved stealing from her family, they always bought the best junk food. Bruce definitely wouldn’t approve.

She brought it with her as she went back upstairs to where the bedrooms were, taking the main stairs rather than the back ones this time. Sure, it was a bit more of a walk to her room, but only a couple of extra steps.

What she hadn’t thought of, though, was that the route she had picked took her past Jason’s old room, and when she saw it, she couldn’t pass it like she normally did.

She checked the hall quickly, before slipping inside before she could reconsider it. The room was warmer since the windows had been closed. However, it was immaculate, like someone had been keeping it clean daily, dusting it and changing the sheets, or at least washing them.

“Shit…” It was probably Alfred that took care of it, there was no way that Bruce could have done it. She frowned, and walked to the bed, taking a drink before placing her mug down beside Jason’s old bed. From there, she sat down, reaching across and picking up one of the books that sat, open and pages down on the bedside table. It was a kid’s book, nothing that Stephanie could imagine the man reading now, and her chest ached as she realised that Jason had only been a kid when he died.

She sat back against the headboard and placed the book on her lap, propping the pillow up behind her back. She settled in then, reading and sipping her hot chocolate, quickly becoming engrossed in the story and forgetting all about going back to her own room.

********************************

Alfred didn’t usually get up so early, just after dawn, but he had had trouble sleeping recently, and so took the opportunity to have some time to himself that morning. He took his time in his morning duties, opening windows and curtains, to allow the natural sunlight to illuminate the halls, casting shadows that stretched along the carpeted ground.

He loved the early morning. Making the Manor come to life while everyone slept was one of his favourite things about the job.

As he slowly made his way towards the stairs in order to begin the day’s preparations, he made sure to check on Master Todd’s room, as he usually did. It was rather pointless really, nothing ever changed between the times he checked it, but he always liked to say good morning to Jason, even if he wasn’t there.

Nothing shocked him anymore, his years of service to the Waynes and their children had raised his bar for surprising things that he tended to take everything in stride nowadays, which was good for a man of his age.

However, he had to admit that seeing a sleeping form on the usually vacant bed surprised him a lot more than he was prepared for.

He shook his head as he took in Stephanie’s curled up state, and he walked over to pluck the book from her hands. Jason had often fallen asleep just like that, too caught up in reading to realise that he was falling asleep. How ironic that Stephanie would do the same. Her hair fell in a halo around her head, and he chuckled softly as he moved her, bit by bit, in order to tug the duvet over her.

He glanced around the room, and sighed, before simply taking the girl’s almost empty mug and bringing it down to the kitchen to wash it.

Maybe it was a sign of something better coming, someone rereading the boy’s old books.

He hoped so.

***********************************

Damian usually disliked lunchtime in school. The crowds weren’t really his thing, and the school lunches were simply _atrocious_ if anyone asked him, he didn’t think they were fit for human consumption.

Nobody asked.

Still, it seemed to be a little more bearable now that he had someone who sat with him, even if they spent the entire time talking about television programs and expressing their excitement about whatever they had been learning in class. Damian listened to every word, not that he’d admit it.

He frowned down at his tray, prodding at the white, gelatinous lump that he had been told were mashed potatoes. He really had to tell Father to look into it, they were poisoning children.

Jon seemed to notice his attention going elsewhere, as his recap of the last movie he had seen trailed off, and he waved his hand in front of the other boy.

“Hey, Damian? You okay?”

Damian huffed and nodded. “Yes, just sick of this cafeteria food. It’s not important.”

Jon giggled and then swapped their trays. “Here, I brought my own food, you can have it.”

Damian paused. Frowned. The tray in front of him looked… good, actually. A healthy looking sandwich, cut into triangles, with an apple, a strawberry yoghurt, sesame sticks and a bottle of water. Infinitely better than the lunch that Jon had gotten in return.

“Are you… sure?”

Jon nodded and started to eat the excuse for a lunch, humming and then launching back into his rant about Star Wars. Damian caught himself staring, and forced himself to look down at his own tray. He wasn’t used to people being nice to him, at least not outside of his own family, the bats.

Why would he swap such a nice lunch for the cafeteria slop? Especially for Damian, who had been nothing but awful to him?

He huffed and started to eat, chewing slowly. Dammit, why did he have to be so damn nice?

He glanced up at Jon and found the boy beaming at him, with that ridiculous smile of his. Damian felt his face heat up, and he pointedly looked back down at his sandwiches.

Maybe being nice to Jon wasn’t such a stupid idea after all.


	8. Chapter 8.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait! We're more than halfway done I still can't believe it.

Damian didn’t usually go on many missions during the school year since it would probably take away from his studies, but when he was really needed, he was usually missing for a few days. He’d come back, pretty bruised and wearing light makeup to wear the worst of it. Of course, Jon did the same thing, but that didn’t mean he didn’t wince whenever he saw the other boy flinch in pain when he moved. He knew that ache, the way it hurt when he moved and how it felt like he couldn’t think straight. However, the flinches were the only indication that Damian gave that he was in even a little bit of pain. They were small flinches, sure, but Jon still saw it.

He _hated_ it.

It was worse now that Damian was being kind to him, having an empty seat beside him. Before, the boy had just glared daggers at Jon as he worked, and they had hardly spoken, never mind gotten along. But it was different now. At the beginning, he had thought he was imagining Damian’s change of attitude, but it seemed that they were friends now. Or at least, Damian had accepted they were friends. He could hardly believe it. Their fathers had been thrilled.

The first day had really dragged by, without Damian to talk to, so Jon chose to sit in the hall for once, where the rest of the school went to eat. The noise made him feel less lonely, having so many people around. It was loud there, and a comfortable warm, so Jon found an empty corner table to sit at and started to eat the lunch that Alfred had packed for him.

Jon had always found it easy enough to get along with kids his age, so it wasn’t really a matter of loneliness. He was sure he could talk to the other kids if he wanted, in fact, he had made fast friends with a couple of them through group work, and sports. He found it easy to talk to other boys, and the girls in his class were sweet and seemed to dote on him and Damian. So, it wasn’t that, it was just that he liked Damian.

 _Really_ liked Damian.

He felt his cheeks heat up and he looked down at his lunch, in an attempt to hide the slight blush that had reddened his face. It was stupid, Jon getting so attached to the other boy since Damian didn’t even like him most of the time. Sometimes Jon even thought that Damian hated him. Even though he had seemed to have a change of heart, recently. Maybe he had just been in a good mood, but Jon had always been a hopeful person. Maybe they _were_ friends, now.

God, Jon was just so confused. He could go and talk to his dad, probably, but it felt a little weird to think about. He’d rather someone younger. If it was anyone else, Jon would probably have gone to Damian.

He sighed and picked up his sandwich, taking a bite. Being thirteen was so _complicated_.

*****************************************

Stephanie had made quite the habit of visiting Jason whenever she could, since the first time. It was nice to have somewhere across town to crash when patrol had been awful, or even just a place to go when the Manor got just a little too lonely, which it often did. Jason was always so welcoming to her, and it was great to spend time with Tim again. She had been upset when he had stopped coming to the Manor so much, but she got it now.

Jason was quite the host, surprisingly.

Still, she couldn’t help but worry about the man, and the separation he still had from everyone. It was almost painfully obvious that he really missed everyone, but he just wouldn’t make the move to reach out to them. He seemed almost scared if she was reading it right. She wanted to help that, especially since she knew exactly how everyone in the Manor felt the exact same. Hopefully, they’d be able to start repairing the relationships between them and stop all of this stupid mentality of alienation. It should be Bruce, doing what she was doing, but she was starting to think that if she wanted something to get done, she’d have to do it herself.

She just didn’t know where to start.

“Jason?” She hummed and folded the dishcloth she had been holding, putting it beside the sink and turning to face the man, who was finishing his own lunch. He looked up at her, and raised an eyebrow, prompting her to continue.

“So, I was thinking.”

Jason chuckled. “Dangerous, that.”

Stephanie rolled her eyes but ploughed on anyway. “I really think that you should… y’know, reconnect with the bats, maybe.”

She saw Jason stiffen, saw his muscles tighten and his face go deadpan, and she sighed. Already closed off.

“Jay, come on, I think it’s time now. It doesn’t have to be all at once, but I really think that Tim and I could help you, I know you miss them.”

Jason swallowed roughly and kept eating. She crossed her arms and shook her head. He was such a toddler sometimes.

“So, I wanted to know your thoughts on my plan, to invite Alfred here for tea later this week.”

Jason looked up at her, his eyes betraying his façade to reveal the surprise he was feeling. “You want to invite Alfred?”

Stephanie nodded and leaned against the counter. “He’s… neutral, as far as the bats go, and I’m assuming that you both were close, based on how he acts. He misses you, Jason.”

Jason chewed his lip. “Just Alfred?”

“Just Alfred.”

She could see the cogs turning in his head, as he listed the pros and cons in his head, his fork suspended in the air as he paused to think.

“I… think that would be okay.”

She beamed at him and went to sit at the table. He gave her a small smile, and she laughed.

“Perfect. This weekend, then.”


End file.
